Philae: The Last Temple of Egypt on SBS – Today, in Egypt, the temples of Philae stand out as one of the most iconic attractions of the Ptolemaic era.
Philae was the last stronghold of the ancient Egyptian religion.
Located on the island of Aguilkia, the sanctuary was initially on the island of Philae, known as “the holy island”, which is now underwater.
Like Abu Simbel, Philae was therefore the subject of an unusual archaeological rescue operation.
To save it from permanent submersion in the 1970s, the world’s greatest scientists, architects and Egyptologists embarked upon the titanic job of dismantling, piece by piece, the 50,000 tons of stone comprising the temples and rebuilding them, exactly as they’d been before.
This film will combine history and mythology, architecture and the safeguarding of a cultural heritage, with a common thread: the incredible technological challenges that had been overcome in the past to build Philae, and then again in the last century to relocate it and save it from the waters.
Philae: The Last Temple of Ancient Egypt – Sunday, 27 August at 9.15pm on SBS and SBS on Demand
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